Achlorhydria is a condition characterized by stomach fluids that are not acidic. Achlorhydria may be a disorder in itself which characteristically produces symptoms of digestive problems. Frequently achlorhydria is a symptom of a different disorder such as cancer of the stomach or certain nervous disorders.
Achlorhydria is difficult to detect without an uncomfortable and professionally administered procedure. The procedure for detecting achlorhydria usually involves introduction of analysis or sampling devices into the patient's stomach to provide either a direct reading of stomach fluid pH or a sample for analysis. In either case, a tube must be inserted down the patient's throat which produces the usual problems of patient resistance and gagging, and as a result tests for achlorhydria are adminstered far less frequently than they should be.
A simple, reliable, and comfortably administered test for achlorhydria is needed. If such a test were available, it could be given routinely as part of regular medical checkups to provide an early warning for serious stomach problems and a reliable indication of the acidity of a patient's stomach fluid.